Darmstadt vs Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund’s hopes of securing another top-four finish in the Bundesliga are in jeopardy as they head to the Merck-Stadion am Bollenfalltor to take on rock-bottom Darmstadt.

Darmstadt’s bid to avoid an immediate return to Germany’s second tier continues after the winter break as they head into proceedings seeking their first win since early October. Stranded at the foot of the table, albeit only three points adrift of safety, the hosts bid to arrest an underwhelming nine-game winless streak (D3, L6). While Dortmund should be a formidable opponent given Darmstadt’s standard, they picked up an unlikely 2-1 home triumph against ‘Die Borussen’ when suffering relegation as the bottom-placed side in their most recent Bundesliga campaign in 2016/17. Yet, that win remains their only H2H success in the new millennium (W1, D1, L2). Worryingly for manager Torsten Lieberknecht, his men have only won once in their eight home league outings this season (D2, L5).

As one of only two sides averaging 2+ conceded goals per home league match going into this matchday, Darmstadt’s backline should be no match for Borussia Dortmund’s reinforced frontline. ‘Die Borussen’ completed the loan signing of Jadon Sancho from Manchester United earlier this week as part of their effort to return to the top-four picture after a four-game winless Bundesliga streak (D3, L1) left them six points adrift of RB Leipzig. That form mirrors Dortmund’s record across their last four top-flight travels. By extension, Edin Terzic’s men have only won twice in their seven league matches on the road this season (D4, L1) despite averaging two goals per game. With Nuri Sahin and Sven Bender back to work alongside under-fire Terzic, Dortmund will be out to post their first away win in domestic action since September.